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A A. E, MGDONALD. Freight and other Transfers.

No. 236,684. I Patented Jan. 1'8,188.

www. v Mv )4W N. PETERS, PMOYO-LITNDGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. D C.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet. 2.

Ai E. MoD-ONALD. Freight and other Transfers. No. 236,684. l Patented Jan. 18., i881.,

ATTEST.' INVENTORI j@ 4f/M www Mmmm Q/ y I l e i a... M 'm NPETERS. PnnTO-LIYHOGRAFHEH. WASHINGTON. D. C.

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ALEXANDER E. MCDONALD, 0F NEYV YORK, N. Y.

FREIGHT AND OTHER TRANSFERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 236,684, dated January 18, 1881.

Application filed June 18, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ALEXANDER E. MC- DONALD, of the city,county, and State of New York, have invented certain Improvements in Freight and other Transfers, of which the fol lowing is a specification.

This invention rela-tes, in the main, to a means or mechanism for transferring freight lacross sidewalks to and from trucks or other vehicles, or from stores to the outer edge of the walk.

It is well known that in cities where trade is considerable, and trucks, drays, and other vehicles are constantly loading and unloading, the freight is generally transferred across the walk and into the store on skids, or the vehicles are backed across the walk to the door or door-step. In either case the walk is blocked for the time and becomes practically impassable for pedestrians.

To obviate this difficulty, and to provide a means by which freight or goods may be transferred from the doorway ot' a store to a truck or other vehicle, or vice versa, without intertering materially with pedestrians, and with little effort, is the object of my present invention, which I will now describe with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure l is a sectional elevation, arranged to illustrate my invention in one of' its forms, and Fig. 2 is a plan of the same. Figs. 3, 4,

5, and 6 are enlarged detail views of one of' the elements of`the invention, which will be more fully described hereinafter, as will also the remaining figures of the drawings.

Let A represent the front wall of a storebuilding, B an excavation under the sidewalk C, and D the line of the curb where the walk joins the street E. F is a raised step or platform, such as is frequently found before storedoors, and G represents an ordinary truck backed up to the curb to receive its load.

These features are all as they are usually found slot, a., in the sidewalk, (best shown in Fig. 2,) which may serve as a guide to prevent lateral swaying. The sectionin Fig. l is taken through this slot.

The freight from the store is placed upon the platform H, and then the latter is pushed, with its load, over or across the walk by the hand into the position indicated by the dotted lines, when it is in position to be unloaded onto the truck. The employment of two levers, I, instead of one, serves to keep the platformulevel, and by arranging the bed-piece J directly below, or nearly below, the point where the platform is to stand when adjacent to the truck, the platform willbe caused to rise from the door to a. level with the tail of the truck, as indicated. NVhen unloaded the platform is pushed back to its first position to receive another load. The freight may be transferred from the vehicle to the store by a reversal of the above-described operation.

K is a spring, preferably arranged between the levers I, and fixed in the bed-piece J. This spring acts upon one or the other of the levers, when the platform is in the position shown in Figs. l and 2, to assist in starting the load, or, when unloading from the truck, to check its descent to the doorway.

As the slot a will remain open, and pedestrians may catch their feet in it, or ice and snow may clog it up, I generally employ some form of' closing device, one of which is shown in Fig. 1, and in detail in Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6. Referring to these figures, L is a chain, one end of which is attached `to a lever, I. This chain plays in grooved guides or keepers at the under side ofthe walk, and passes over a pulley, b, its free extremity being provided with a retracting-weight, c. In the detail views Fig. 3 is a top view; Fig.4, a side view, Fig. 5 a bottom view, and Fig. 6 a cross-section, of' the chain L. The links come up flush with the walk, and are provided with flanges d d at their sides to enga-ge the keepers e e, (see Fig. 6,) formed with or attached to the plate forming the walk.

Instead of' employing the weight c the chain might be endless and secured to the lever I, and two pulleys, b b, be employed. This construction would render it more positive in its operation.

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WVhere the step or platform in front of the store is about on a level with the tail of the truck, I may arrange the bed-piece J about half-way between the positions assumed by the platform when loadingand unloading, as sh owm in Fig. 7; or, if the platform be higher than the tail of the truck, the bed-piece may be placed correspondingly nearer to the buildin 0*. This arrangement of the bed-piece or point at which the feet of the levers I I are hinged will vary according to circumstances.

In FiO. 7, I have shown a means of operating the platform from within doors, which consists of an endless belt or rope, M, attached to a lever I, reve over suitable sheaves or guidepulleys, and adapted to be operated by a crank,

j'. Figs. 9 and I() show, enlarged, the means of attaching the rope M to the lever I, but any good attachment may be employed. Fig. S shows the platform H when viewed from the rear.

In lieu of the bed-piece J the feet of the levers I may be hinged or pivot-ed directly to the floor or ground, or may rest in sockets in the same; but the bed-piece is, I think, preferable.

In lieu of the chain L for closing the slot a I may employ other devices-as, for instance, a metal plate extending the length of the slot and hinged to the walk at its side or edge. This plate maybe turned back out of the way when the transfer is in commission. Such a plate is indicated at g in Fig. 7.

In Fig. ll, I have shown a modification of my transfer, in which only one supportinglever, I, fixed rigidly to the platform, is employed. The only objection to the employment of one lever is that it tilts the platform when in use, and if a V-shaped or concave. platform be employed it will not lie iiat and out ofthe way when not in commission. To obviate this I make the platform in two parts, one part, as N, beingfixed orrigid and adapted to stand horizontally when the transfer is not in commission, and the other part, as O, hinged to the fixed part, and adapted to lie fiat when the transfer is not in commission, and to be raised and supported at an angle. as shown, when in use. Any means may be employed to support it in this position; but that shown, which consists of an arm or arms on the part O, adapted to engage a pin inserted in the fixed part, will serve as well as any.

Although designed for the transfer of freight across sidewalks, my invention is also adapted for transferring passengers across chasms or spaces usually bridged over, and I do not wish to be contined to its employment for any specic service.

rlhe platform may also be covered with a canopy, if necessary or desirable, or it may be in the form of a car or basket where circumstances admit of it.

Where the transfer is intended to sustain heavy loads a pair or pairs of supports,I, may be employed-that is, instead of the support or supports being attached to the transfer at its center they may be arranged under its ends, as in Fig. 12. In such a case two or more slots, a, would be required, according to circumstances.

I am aware that a lift or elevator employing a platform mounted upon the apex of trian gularly-arran ged levers and adapted to be lifted and advanced by straightening np said levers has been proposed for transferring cars to a higher level; but I am not aware of a transfer for freight or loads across sidewalks or chasms, constructed as herein set forth, havin g ever been employed or proposed.

Having thus described my invention, I claiml. A transfer for freight or other service consisting of a platform, or its equivalent, for the load, mounted on the upper extremity of a long supporting-lever,.the said lever being hinged or pivoted at its foot in an excavation under the walk, in combination with the sidewalk, having a slot for the saithlever to play in, whereby the load may be transferred from one side of the walk to the other without materially interfering with the passage of pedestrians, substantially as set forth.

2. A transfer for freight or other purposes consisting of a platform for the load, mounted on the upper extremity of a long` lever, pivoted or hinged at its foot in an excavation under the walk, in combination with the said walk, having a slot for the lever to play in, as shown, and the step before the door, the platform being arranged to tit into a break in the said step, and to form a part thereof when at rest, substantially as set forth.

3. A transfer for freight or other service consisting of the following elements, namely: a platform, H, or its equivalent, a support or supports, I, a bed-piece, J, and a spring, K, all arranged substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the freight-trans fer and the keepers e e, of the chain L, arranged to close the slot a in the walk when the transfer is not in commission, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination of the slotted walk O, the step F, the platform H, the levers l I, pivoted to the platform and in the excavation B under the walk, and the spring K, al l arranged to operate substantially as set forth.

6. The combination of the slotted walk C, the platform H, the levers I I, pivoted to the platform and in the excavation under the walk, the spring K, and the chain L, arranged to play in keepers in the walk and to close the slot a, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALEXANDER E. MCDONALD.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR C. FRASER, HENRY GONNRTT.

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